Popstar Harry Styles has said he feels “so aware” that he is in the middle of a “career highlight” with a string of London shows. The 32-year-old left the glitter and sparkle at Wembley to perform an intimate orchestral show during his headline set at London’s Meltdown festival.
The singer, who curated the Southbank Centre’s 2026 festival, was joined by the Jules Buckley Orchestra for the fundraising event on Tuesday evening. It comes days after Styles kicked off his record-breaking residency at London’s Wembley Stadium, where he is set to play 12 nights.
Styles told the audience: “Thank you so much for being here tonight. Feels both present and incredibly not present to be so aware that you’re in the middle of your career highlight for me. For anyone who has been to the tour, it’s a little bit different in case you can’t tell.” He joked, “There will be no nipples,” referencing his tour fashion which often reveals his chest.
The evening began with the orchestra greeted onto the stage by an eager audience, with musicians taking their seats in matching white shirts, black trousers, and oversized black bows. Styles followed soon after to a roar of cheers before opening the show with a rendition of “Boyfriends.” He went on to sing a combination of songs from across his four albums, including “Paint By Numbers,” “Fine Line,” “Two Ghosts,” and “Matilda.”
Styles said: “I’ve always been a lover of orchestral music, classical music, and it’s quite an intimidating field to step into as someone who doesn’t, cannot, read music.” He later praised the composer for making him feel so welcome, adding that he “never made me feel like I didn’t belong there in any way. It’s been beautiful collaborating with him.”
Styles first collaborated with the composer on his song “Coming Up Roses” from his fourth studio album, “Kiss All The Time, Disco Occasionally.” Buckley has since gone on to help the singer with the string arrangements for his Together, Together tour, which kicked off in May.
Styles also sang “Carla’s Song” from his latest album and explained how it was written about watching his friend listen to Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” for the first time. “It was like watching someone see a magic trick for the first time,” he said. “Music is magic and I feel so lucky to get to be a part of it in just a small way. I think hearing songs like that is a reminder of this thing that is so much bigger than any one artist that you like. Any one song is this thing that every musician is kind of investing in, and just trying to add a little piece of themselves to. These things are around for so much longer than any of us. Nights like tonight I feel incredibly privileged to get to play with such incredibly talented musicians.”
Styles ended the intimate show with a rendition of the 1970 song. He is set to smash the record for the most performances by any artist in a single year at Wembley Stadium, beating Coldplay’s record of 10 performances there last year as well as Taylor Swift’s record for the most concerts performed at the national stadium by a solo artist during a single concert run.
The “Watermelon Sugar” singer released his fourth studio album in March and is weeks into his global tour with upcoming dates in New York, Sao Paulo, Mexico City, Melbourne, and Sydney. He rose to fame as a member of One Direction – alongside Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Zayn Malik, and Louis Tomlinson – after the group was formed on ITV singing competition The X Factor in 2010. He launched his solo career after he and his bandmates went on hiatus in 2016, almost a year after Malik left the group, and he has gone on to achieve global success, winning multiple Grammy and Brit awards.
